


Falling Back Into Your Arms

by captainamergirl



Category: General Hospital
Genre: Alternate History, Angst, F/M, Mental Health Issues, Short Chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-28
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-05-14 19:58:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14776275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captainamergirl/pseuds/captainamergirl
Summary: Where were you when everything was falling apart?





	1. Tired / Feel Nothing

**Author's Note:**

> I have been working on this story for literally YEARS now and finally decided to share it here because while the pairing is definitely not the most popular around (it's Jax/Sam again!) the subject matter is near and dear to my heart. I hope you'll give it a chance. It will be triggering at some points so please be warned. Thanks for reading! Note: This takes place in an AU 2010 so there is no Daniel Edward, Scout, or even Drew. Sorry.

**Tired**  
  
He moved down the dock steps rubbing his hands together fiercely in a vain effort to ward off the chill that permeated so deep inside of him that he felt he could never be rid of it. His marriage was over; his life was a mess, and worst of all, he could only blame himself and his need for vengeance on Sonny for the disastrous state of things. He sometimes wondered if he was any better off or more sane than his sadly demented brother.  
  
He came to a stop at the edge of the docks when he spotted a lone figure hunched over the edge of the pier. The person was petite and dark-haired and even in the darkness, he recognized Sam McCall.   
  
He hurried over to her and grabbed her almost roughly by the arm, yanking her away from the edge and the treacherously cold waters of the Port Charles River.   
  
"What do you think you're doing?" she immediately demanded when her dark eyes met his stormy blue ones.  
  
"What do you think?" He returned in a harsh voice. "Stopping you from jumping."  
  
"I would never do that!" she snapped. "Never. Okay?"  
  
"Then what the hell were you doing leaning out over the water like you were ready to take a swim?"  
  
Sam shook her head. "I - I ... Honestly I don't know. I just came here to clear my mind and ... God I'm tired, I'm just so tired ..."  
  
"Then go home and sleep," he said in a harsh voice.  
  
She glared at him. "That's just what I plan to do," she said and started to hurry away when suddenly in her haste to escape him and whatever demons haunted her, she lost her footing and went plunging towards the icy waters of the river.  
  
***  
  
 **Feel Nothing**  
  
"I'm fine, _I'm fine!"_ she screeched as he hauled her out of the water as if she were no heavier than a wet noodle.  
  
"Are you kidding? That water is freezing," Jax said as he immediately shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around her tiny shoulders. He had managed to snatch her back up to the planks of the dock without getting too soaked himself, so his coat was relatively dry and he hoped, warm too.  
  
Sam shrugged. "Is it?" She said in a soft voice. "I hardly noticed. I hardly feel a thing."  
  
Jax stared at her as he bundled the mohair coat tighter around her and pulled her to her feet. "I don't know what's going on with you but I am taking you to the hospital."  
  
"Why?" She asked.  
  
"Because you're drenched. You could easily have hypothermia even though you were only in there for a few seconds."  
  
She laughed and the sound was hollow and harsh. "I am fine. How many ways can I say that? I feel nothing; nothing at all."  
  
"And that's the weirdest part of all of this," he said. He stared at her again for a moment and then moved her towards the stairs, his strong arm wrapped around her shoulders which she barely seemed to notice.  
  
"Why are you suddenly playing my Knight in Shining Armor?" she asked.  
  
He shook his head. "I am no one's Knight in Shining Armor. I just know ... I know that your mother would be so distraught if anything happened to you..."  
  
She quirked a smile as he practically had to carry her up the stairs. "And you would be happy right? Like everyone else?"  
  
"Did I say that?"  
  
"You don't even really like me, Jasper Jacks. Don't forget that."  
  
"You're not making it easy to forget, that's for sure," he said, and then impatient with her slow progress, he finally scooped her up into his arms and carried her to the safety of his car. 


	2. Fine, Just Fine / Can't Wait

** Fine, Just Fine **   
  
"She will be fine, Jax, just fine," Patrick Drake said.   
  
Sam glanced at Jax. "Told you so."   
  
He shook his head and said nothing as Patrick continued on. "I do recommend though that she gets into a hot bath as soon as possible and then under a warm pile of blankets. Otherwise, you're okay, Sam," Patrick said, addressing her this time.   
  
"I know. Jax didn't want to believe it though," she said.   
  
Jax shook his head. "I'll take her home and make sure she does those things."   
  
"Good. You can go now, Sam. Take care."   
  
Sam waved her hand dismissively. "I'm fine!"   
  
Patrick glanced at Jax and shrugged. Then he turned and walked out and Jax helped Sam up from the examination table.    
  
"Jason's, right?" he said.   
  
Sam shook her head. "No, no. Please don't take me there."   
  
"Why not?"   
  
"I don't want to worry him. He has enough on his plate right now. He doesn't need to get upset about this non-event."   
  
Jax sighed. "Okay ... So your apartment then?"   
  
"Yeah that would be fine, just fine."    
  
***   
  
** Can't Wait **   
  
Jax walked into the apartment with Sam and flipped on the lights, then shut the door behind them.   
  
"You go take a bath while I make you some coffee."   
  
She raised an eyebrow. "Um, hello? Who said you could just come here and start ordering me around? In fact, why are you even still here?"   
  
"To make sure you do everything Patrick said you should," he answered.   
  
She rolled her eyes. "How many times can I tell you that I'm -"   
  
"Fine, just fine. Yes, I know," he said, finishing her sentence. He didn't know why he was still here either, or why he even cared, but he suspected there was a lot more going on with Sam than met the eye and he didn't feel he could just leave her alone right then.    
  
"But the sooner you do what Patrick asked, the sooner you can be rid of me."   
  
Sam sighed. "Can't wait."   
  
Then she turned and walked off.   
  
XoXoXo   
  
Jax spent the next fifteen minutes trying to make one cup of coffee with the measly grounds he had found in a canister pushed back into the far corner of her cupboard.    
  
He was carrying it to the living room for her when he finally became aware of the eerie silence in the whole apartment. He set the coffee cup down on a table in the hallway and knocked on her bathroom door.   
  
"Sam? Sam, are you alright?"   
  
No answer.   
  
_"Sam?"_ He said, his voice a little louder. That's when he noticed his shoes were squishing noisily into the carpet. The  _soaked_ carpet.    
  
Without giving it too much thought, he threw open the door and was horrified to see the tub was quickly overflowing with water and Sam was submerged at the very bottom of it. 


	3. Choices / Sofa, Floor

** Choices **   
  
_"Sam!"_ Jax bellowed and immediately reached into the bathtub and pulled her out, the water running every which way as he did so.    
  
He cradled her to his chest and carried her down the hall to the living room and the dry floor. He set her down and was grabbing for a blanket to cover her with when she suddenly reached up and locked her tiny hand around his wrist.    
  
"The lengths you will go to see me naked," she said and laughed like it was the funniest thing she had ever heard.   
  
"What the hell?!" he demanded. Suddenly mindful of her nakedness, he tossed a blanket over her. "Here I thought you were a goner, that I was going to have to do mouth-to-mouth and ..."   
  
"And I said I was fine, didn't I?" she said.   
  
"Oh yeah, Sam, really fine. Lying at the bottom of the tub with the water flooding everywhere -"   
  
"I was practicing holding my breath," she said. "I used to do it as a kid."   
  
"That doesn't matter. You could have killed yourself and I would have been responsible."   
  
"No one asked you to be, Jasper," she said, sitting up and clutching the now damp blanket to her torso. "In fact, I believe I wanted you to leave."   
  
"I am not leaving. Not until I call Alexis and tell her what a nut you are and tell her that she'd better come down here and babysit you. I am tired of saving you from near-death experiences."   
  
Sam guffawed. "I wasn't near-death. And who do you think you are - Superman? There is only one superhero in this town and that's Jason. Don't you forget it."   
  
Jax rolled his eyes. "How could I? You and Carly will never let me forget it. How anyone can believe that shallow, pathetic, and emotionally-stunted man really is -"   
  
"Watch it, Jasper, your jealousy is showing."   
  
Jax shook his head. "Look, stay here while I call your mom. I don't trust you not to try something dumb again."   
  
Sam growled but didn't move. "Fine. Call her and get her worried over absolutely nothing."   
  
"It obviously isn't 'nothing', Sam. You've got a screw loose."   
  
"Oh please."   
  
"Its true. You just can't see it because you're all ... screwy, I guess is the right word. Either she is going to come for you now or I'm staying the night. You choose."    
  
***   
  
** Sofa, Floor **   
  
"Rock-Hard place -  _ME!_ " Sam said. "You're not seriously making me choose here?"    
  
"Choices, choices," Jax said, rubbing his stubbly beard thoughtfully.   
  
"That's like choosing between death and life imprisonment," Sam said.   
  
Jax shook his head. "Fine. I'm calling your mom." He reached for his ever present cell phone and Sam slapped it out of his hand.    
  
"Hey!"   
  
"Hey, nothing. Fine. You can stay, but you've got the couch. I get the bed."   
  
"No dice."   
  
"Say what?"   
  
"I am not letting you out of my sight for a minute. I don't trust you."   
  
"I don't need you to trust me. You're forcing your will on me just like everyone else," Sam said and he noticed her dark eyes flashing with anger.   
  
"I am trying to do what's best for you."   
  
"Isn't that what they all say?" Sam said and hauled herself up from the floor. "Can I least have two minutes to myself to get dressed,  _Master?"_   
  
Jax rolled his eyes. "Is there any water in your bedroom?"   
  
"Shut up!" she said and had dashed off before he could stop her.   
  
XoXoXo   
  
Two minutes later, Sam returned in a long-sleeved tee-shirt and flannel shorts. She was carrying blankets and tossed them at Jax's head.   
  
"Hey!" he snapped.   
  
"Oh sorry," Sam said sarcastically. "I get the sofa; you get the floor."   
  
Jax shrugged. He didn't relish sleeping on the hard floor but what else could he do? He had sort of taken on unwilling responsibility for Sam's obviously fraying sanity.   
  
"Fine, just fine," he mocked.   
  
He grabbed one of the blankets and pillows and settled as best as he could on the floor. Sam bundled herself up into another stack of blankets and then shut her eyes. Silence descended on the room. 


	4. A Memory / Everyone Depends on Her

**A Memory**  
  
Jax had finally managed to fall asleep when he was awakened what seemed like only a second later by the distinctive sound of whimpering. His eyes immediately snapped open and he looked around the darkened room. The ache in his back quickly reminded him he had been trying to fall asleep on the floor. In Sam McCall's apartment, no less.  
  
He sat up and called her name. "Sam! Sam, wake up!"  
  
She didn't awaken and finally he reached out and lightly grasped her hand. She jumped and immediately shot her eyes open. _"What the hell?"_  
  
"Sam, don't be scared. It's just me. Jasper Jacks."  
  
"I know. I recognize your accent."  
  
He unconsciously rubbed his fingers over her cold knuckles. "You're okay now. You were just having a nightmare."  
  
"It wasn't a nightmare," she said quietly as she extracted her hand from his and flipped over on the sofa. "It was a memory ..."  
  
Jax stared at her in the darkness, trying to make out the expression on her face. He couldn't see much. "What do you mean, Sam? What do you mean it was a memory?"  
  
"Never mind, just go back to sleep and I'll do the same," she said.  
  
He sighed then, knowing he was not going to get anything else out of her tonight. Or maybe, ever.

~*~*~*

**Everyone Depends on Her**  
  
Sam opened the kitchen door the next morning to find Jax sitting at the breakfast nook, buttering a piece of toast. "What the hell are you doing?"  
  
Jax lifted his head and offered her a small smile. "I am trying to decide if this stale hockey puck could use a little jam on it."  
  
"Well figure it out on your way out the door. I overslept and I'm going to be late for work."  
  
"You were exhausted. You probably still are. You had quite a night."  
  
"Yeah well, Spinelli depends on me to be on time."  
  
"Why don't you just pull a sicky?"  
  
"A what?"  
  
"Call in sick."  
  
"I can't. I just can't. They need me. Spinelli, Jason ... Everyone depends on me, don't you get it? I can't let them down!"  
  
Her face had twisted into an expression he could only call frenzied. She probably didn't even realize she was shouting.  
  
He reached for her arm and lightly pulled her down into the seat beside him. "Just relax, Sam. Spinelli will understand if you have to take the day off. Just calm down and let me call your mother."  
  
"No!"  
  
"Sam -"  
  
"No. I said no!"  
  
"Sam, why are you so resistant to seeing Alexis?"  
  
"Because it's all her fault."  
  
"What is?"  
  
_"EVERYTHING!"_ Sam thundered.


End file.
